The present invention is directed to an ice bin/agitator configuration for a ice dispensing apparatus wherein ice is provided to an ice bin and then dispensed from the ice bin into drinking glasses or ice buckets, and where ice can also be placed onto a cold plate for cooling beverages which are subsequently dispensed. In these types of devices, an ice bin is utilized to store ice provided from an ice making source, and some type of device must be employed in order to prevent the individual ice cubes or ice flakes from bridging or freezing into a single unmanageable block of ice, thereby rendering the machine unusable. Ice cubes formed from compressed flaked ice pose special problems since these types of ice cubes are softer and can be more readily broken by the agitator blades than clear, frozen ice cubes.